My son is a sewing 11 YO. He likes my HV Lily 550 (now 7 years old), My
Elna Lotus machines (he particularly liked the Stella Air Electronic I
bought for a friend), thinks the Featherweight is good for learning on,
and is looking forward to learning to treadle on my Singer 15-88...

Lots of kids I've taught love the Bernina 1008 (used a lot in schools
here) and other Husqvarna models (the Lily is no longer available). I
myself learned at the age of seven on a Singer 99.

Girls seem to like slower machines (or those you can make go slow
easily), boys like all the fancy stitch patterns, and are particularly
taken with being able to sew their names and rude words! ;)

James makes quilts. We'll get on to clothes this summer (zippy off
cargo pants and a vest with three million pockets I see in his eye, plus
a combination of camp blanket and poncho for camp fires in cold camps
while scouting!). He needs a tough machine!

What sort of sewing does your 11 want to do? Maybe when we know that and
the budget, we'll be able to help more. Jeans and quilt projects will
need a stronger machine than cotton shirts, for example... I'm looking
round for a decent pre-loved machine for James to have all of his own.

As a preteen/sewist, I would like to give my two cents worth. I must
agree that budget is a big concern. If s/he has already gotten a little
into the swing of things, find out what s/he likes doing, and take her
along when you go shopping. S/he will guide you to what s/he would
prefer, as long as s/he keeps in mind price point and needs. If s/he
has never really sewn any, I would imagine a good basic sewing machine
with a few feet included and a couple of fancy stitches would be
perfect. I would also include a couple of needles and feet with that.
My machine (my only as of now **sniff**, but I am saving for a Janome
memory craft) is a Janome 415. Simple, but gets the job done and is
effective. Has a couple of built in stitches and I *think* will take a
few cams. So far it has been able to stand any and all fabric thrown at
it (everything from sheer organza to heavy denim). Has some options to
convert it for needs such as quilting. Like I said, take him/her along
with you when shopping, and see what s/he needs/likes. It is rather
important in the long far off run. My grandmother bought my machine,
but luckily took me to see the one she picked out before she paid. I*hated* it. I picked out a different one, and have loved it to near
death. Good Luck!!

Tahirih, humble sewist
"Two things are infinate; the universe and human stupididty.
I'm not sure about the former." -Albert Eintein

Tahirih, I just want to complement you on your grasp of English. Not
because I suspect English is a second language for you or anything but
because I've not yet seen a preteen (or a teen even!) use such
impeccable grammar and punctuation. I'm highly impressed and your
parents must be inordinately proud of you :)

Umm, thank you.. I think. It's partly due to the fact that I live with
my grandparents, who both teach at the college level, and my dad who is
an author. People have been shoving books at me since I was three (even
though I learned to read in first grade) I guess what with reading so
many books in my short life and having the wacko-writing gene it comes
naturally. It also seems that every Osborne is a font of information
concerning the oddest and most random of topics. Which really comes in
handy for my Scholors' Bowl team I must add...

Sounds a bit like my family... My older sister taught me to read when I
was 4, as much as a game as anything else. Dad trained as a teacher
after doing a degree in History, and then taught people to fly fast jets
as part of his RAF career! His father was a Minister of the Kirk.
Mum's family are all engineers, but again, great bookworms from an early
age. If son James (now 11) chooses to go to uni, he'll be one of the
fourth generation of tertiary educated folk in the family.

Learning to read, learning to sew... happened at much the same time for
me. I started school already doing both!

You keep the good work up, young 'un - show the world kids ain't all
bozos and losers! ;)

I agree with Kate that Tahirih is a credit to her generation; however, I
would advise caution in putting identifying personal information in her
ng posts, for her own safety. Just call me paranoid, if you want to. :)

Oh, I do agree Doreen. It isn't safe at all to post some things on the
internet, lest people like spammers, rapists, and murderers are around.
But, even though I don't quite **KNOW** any of you, I think I can be
pretty sure that none of you are in the category listed above. That's
why no one knows where I live, or who my family is, or my phone #, and
you have to try really hard to get ahold of me thru email (the one
everyone views isn't real). So methinks that after sharing that info, I
can still sleep soundly at night, not that I don't understand where you
are coming from, of course.

My concern is that we don't know just who is reading this ng at any
given time, so it's possible that someone in one of those categories
might be interested in personal info that's posted. I think you have
told us some of those things.

(Does a famous nickname, but spelled in a rather unique way, mean
anything to you?)